Basil Sprigs a Springin'

It is, the first week of spring quarter. The expansive blue skies look over melting heaps of snow, refrozen puddles, and peeking through dirt patches. The extremes of Chicagoland weather, while terrifying at first (40 tornados in 1 day!), truly bring out the subtle and varied beauties of nature.

I have a fresh bundle of Thai Basil smuggled over from sunny California, Japanese eggplant, and a couple of free hours on hand. What should I do? Well, cook some tasty eggplant of course! Below is a slightly tweaked recipe from Tyler Florence. I’ve been making it since my Junior year of undergrad. The combination of sweet, salty, and spicy keeps me coming back. It is a …with tea, tested and approved recipe!

Adapted from Tyler Florences' Szechwan Eggplant

3 Japanese eggplants cut in ½-1 inch pieces
3 tablespoons Vegetable oil (for frying the eggplant)
1 inch peeled an minced ginger
3 peeled and minced garlic cloves
Red pepper flakes to taste
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1 tablespoon light brown sugar

½ cup of water or more

2 green onions, sliced in ½-1 inch segments
½ cup Thai holy basil leaves lightly chopped (very important!)

Salt and pepper

1. Pour the oil into a large pan, and fry the eggplant on medium high heat (in batches if needed). I do this until there are some brownish caramelization marks on each side.

2. Sprinkle eggplant with salt and pepper.

3. Remove the eggplant.

4. Add more oil if needed. Fry the garlic, ginger, and red pepper flakes for a couple of minutes on medium heat. You should smell some tasty aromas.

5. Add back in the eggplant.

6. Add in the soy sauce, rice vinegar, brown sugar, and a half cup of water. Cook until the sauce is absorbed. Add more water if you want the eggplant to be softer. I like mine very soft, and almost falling apart, so I usually add about 2 cups of water in smaller batches.

7. A couple minutes before you take it off the stove, toss in the green onions and Thai basil. Continue cooking until you see the leaves wilt and look kind of like cooked spinach.